


Just A Little While Longer

by napoleonboneaparte



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians & Related Fandoms - All Media Types, The Heroes of Olympus - Rick Riordan
Genre: Aged-Up Character(s), Christmas Fluff, Depression, Drunkenness, M/M, Mentioned Annabeth Chase, Mentioned Hazel Levesque - Freeform, Mentioned Percy Jackson, Minor Violence, One Shot, Post-Break Up, mentioned Piper Mclean, old crush
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-31
Updated: 2016-12-31
Packaged: 2018-09-13 10:53:54
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,690
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9120517
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/napoleonboneaparte/pseuds/napoleonboneaparte
Summary: What do you do when your best friend (and old crush) is a shell of his former self? That's a question that Nico would like answered as he enters week 3 of babysitting a surviving but barely alive Jason Grace. Wallowing in his own misery after Piper left, Jason has now found companionship with two new buddies, beer and whisky. After a long Christmas eve night celebrating with his new friends, Nico may have a window of opportunity to bring his friend back to life, and also, find that Jupiter's son may have a lot more surprises than he expects.





	

**Author's Note:**

> After quite a bit of a hiatus, I'm happy to announce that I've had just enough time during the Christmas holiday to produce this piece of work. I've a lot of ideas on my mind but the moment they start going on paper, my mind starts going haywire. (Sigh...) Maybe I'll fare better the more I write, so enjoy this simple story and have a happy new year ahead of you!

“And a vewy mewwy – happy – Neeks, is it happy or mewwy? I can’t wemembew…”

The only response that Nico could willingly offer to Jason’s query was a painful wince and a sympathetic glance. His speech was slurred, barely understandable after one too many shots of alcohol. Admittedly, if there were far more people around, Nico would already have bundled him into the car and drove away as far and as fast as he could. Alas, the only dirty look Jason was getting was from the disapproving bartender himself, no doubt annoyed by the amount of clean-up he would have to do clearing the shattered remains of several mugs.

If Jason had been waiting for an answer, he did not get it and in any case, he did not seem to mind as he just downed another swig of beer before smiling like the drunk fool he was. His liver must have been crying out in agony, Nico thought to himself. At the same time, the pathetic sight of a child of the Big Three drinking his life away did make his stomach knot itself. Maybe a lesser demigod might end up like this, but a son of Jupiter?

Desperate to keep himself from thinking too much, Nico checked the time on his watch. It was nearly midnight; Christmas day was just minutes away. He spared a thought to wonder whether Hazel was having a good time at her Christmas dinner. She had invited him to come over to New Rome to join her and Frank, but he felt responsible for keeping a close eye on Jason. A nice plump Christmas turkey was not worth risking Jason slitting his wrists again or worse.

“Hey, bawkeep!” garbled Jason as he stared morosely at the bottom of his now empty mug. “Another beew please, honey?”

The barkeeper’s eyebrow twitched, no doubt itching to throw Jason out into the snow and slam the shutters on him. The only thing keeping him from doing just that was the thick wad of cash that Nico had conveniently stacked neatly on the counter.

“Jason, I think – I think you’ve had enough,” said Nico as he sent a silent signal to cancel the order. He wondered whether he should have stepped in as soon as Jason started gulping down his eleventh drink.

The Roman demigod did not seem to agree with him. He just smiled a drunk, stupid smile as if he had just heard the world’s best joke from Nico. “No, no, just, just one more dwink. Just one more.”

“You said that fifteen minutes ago,” Nico muttered under his breath as he wrapped Jason’s left arm around his shoulder and dislodged him from the barstool. For once, the barkeeper spared Nico a sympathetic glance as he nodded a goodnight to him.

“Whewe are we going now, Neeks?”

“Don’t call me ‘Neeks’,” growled Nico. “It’s Nico. And I’m sending you back home.” The urge to just throw Jason to the ground and let him crawl back to his apartment was starting to build and bubble inside him. How could Jason Grace, the son of the king of the Gods, allow himself to become a shadow of what he once was? Nico bit his lip. Broken heart or not, Jason did not have the right to do this to himself. But in any case, it was the right thing to do to help Jason get through this phase, even if it meant resisting the urge to give him a good shaking.

He continued holding on tightly to the slightly larger built Jason, doing his best to steady him and help him stumble along the sidewalk. They had just made half the journey when he heard a very strange gurgling sound. A very strange gurgling sound that was coming up in Jason’s throat. Nico barely had enough time to get away from Jason and put himself a safe distance from him. Jason was retching and puking all over a drain grate. Like that scene from The Exorcist, Nico darkly mused to himself. Nico had smelt an assortment of putrid scents in the Underworld and beyond, but gods, the stench of a drunk’s vomit was something definitely nose-corroding. Not to mention it looked like a combination of beer, whisky, half-digested peanuts and some other lovely goodies.

“Holy shit,” gasped Nico, breathing heavily after holding his breath for a minute.

Jason looked up sheepishly at him, vomit stains around his mouth and his shirtfront. “Sowwy, Nico, but I think I might be a little dwunk.”

“Understatement of the century,” muttered Nico as he took out a wad of tissues from his pocket. Trying not to retch himself, he carefully wiped away the stains as best he could. “You know you are going to wake up tomorrow with the mother of all hangovers, right?”

“I know, Nico. But you’ll take care of me anyway, wight?”

Something deep in Nico’s heart stirred. An old, painful memory.

He sighed and helped Jason back up onto his feet. “Yes, I will. You know that.”

A drunken smile met Nico’s eyes. “You will because you love me, wight?”

Nico froze. If Zeus for some reason decided to rain lightning bolts on him, he still wouldn’t have felt a damn thing. It was only a burp from Jason that shook him out of his shock and reminded him that his friend was more drunk than a skunk.

“I did,” Nico admitted. Having his crush exposed by a psychotic love god was one thing but letting Jason know the truth was another. If it turned out that Jason was just faking it, Nico was planning to let the earth swallow him and Jason whole.

“Sweet!”

“But did you love me too?” Nico had to ask while dragging Jason into the apartment's elevator with him because why not? Jason wasn’t going to remember anything anyway.

“I do, Nico, I do love you.”

Nico had to crack a bitter smile for a moment. As of late, a sober Jason was a bad-tempered one. If Jason’s five senses were up and running, he would definitely have never said anything like this. More likely to give him a bruised eye instead. Still, a quiet hope had sprung to live. Nico took a moment to stare right at Jason’s face. His usually penetrating eyes were uncharacteristically glassy and wide, looking like that of a deer caught in the headlights. They were still their pretty lightning blue though. And those lips of his…Nico looked away.

A few months back, Jason’s apartment was the epitome of neatness and tidiness, a mindset carried over from his years in New Rome. Nico knew that Jason didn’t share his tolerance of a disorganised room, let alone a home. But that was the old Jason. Old and mouldy packets of Chinese take-out littered the coffee table. The odour of unwashed laundry was also hard to ignore, as was the dusty feeling of an unmopped floor.

“Come on, Jason,” said Nico, crinkling his nose when that sour smell of dried vomit drifted and burned his eyes. “You need a bath.”

“Why? I’m tired.”

“And I’m not going to let you sleep in your own puke.”

“Leave me alone,” grumbled Jason as he weakly tried to float his way out of Nico’s grasp, but the son of Hades held him down firmly and managed to get him into the bathroom.

They had taken only a step or two before Nico heard the warning gurgling sound again. Another bout of throwing up left Jason stumbling to and kneeling over his porcelain throne. Once he was done, Nico helped him to strip before pushing him into the bathtub and turning on the hot water. It was not like he had not seen another guy naked before but it was really hard to give him a scrub without unintentionally feasting on the eye candy that was Jason. Nico daydreamed for a bit wondering what it would be like to feel his firm muscles under his hands. His face was starting to turn a shade of beetroot red until he realised that Jason was staring innocently at him.

After making sure that Jason could handle bathing himself without drowning, Nico marched into Jason’s bedroom to at least make sure Jason was not sleeping in filth that night. Damp bedsheets were tossed into the washing machine and replaced with clean sheets.

“When did I become his maid?” grumbled Nico as he hurriedly folded piles of clothing and stuffed them into the cupboard. Upon turning the bedroom into a more presentable habitat, Nico hurried back into the bathroom to find Jason soundly sleeping in the bathwater. Maybe he did not scrub himself, but Nico reasoned that since Jason was mostly soaking in the water, he was bound to be reasonably clean. And not smell like a dumpster-diving hobo.

Helping him out of the water, Nico towelled Jason lightly, avoiding eye contact the whole time. As soon as he was dry, Nico took his arm and carefully led him into his bedroom.

“I can walk. Don’t touch me.” The grouchy side of Jason was making its comeback, but now with a massive hangover attached. Nico wasn’t really looking forward to taking care of a moping, irritable demigod the next day.

“Oh, trust me,” snarled Nico. The condescending tone was making his blood boil. “I have a thousand and one better things to do than your spring-cleaning.”

“I didn’t ask for your help. And when are you leaving?”

“Oh, I’ll just be here for a little while longer. And you’re welcome.” Nico sulkily leaned against the door frame and watched Jason tumbling into bed stark naked. The thought of putting on some pants on him wandered around for a brief moment in Nico’s head but vanished as soon as Jason’s snores reached him. As delightful as it was to just stand there and admire Jason’s physique, Nico tore his eyes away and ambled out to the living room.

Clearing out as much trash as the trashcan allowed, Nico then collapsed onto the couch. At first, he had planned to shadow-travel back to his own home, but decided that the effort wasn’t worth it. He was too tired to do much but lay down for a bit. At the same time, he pondered about Jason’s words. “I do love you.” Was Jason just being delirious or did the delirium loosen his tongue? It would not really hurt to hope it was the latter, Nico mused to himself. It wasn’t very likely, but it wouldn’t hurt to imagine that Jason Grace was having a crush on him. That happy thought slowly leaked into dreamland and gave Nico quite a few pleasant dreams, a rarity for a demigod.

That was at least before he found Jason’s hand tightening around his throat.

“Did you touch me?!” roared Jason, his usually calm face distorted into a mirror of pure rage and resentment. Nico had seen horrific abominations of all shapes and sizes, but the sight of Jason actually choking him was one of the most frightening.

“What?!” Nico wheezed, adrenaline surging as his hand groped around for a weapon. Then, it hit him that he had left his sword by the door.

“What did you to me? I woke up in my bed naked!”

“What the fuck do you think I did to you?!” Nico managed to push Jason off and kicked him hard in the stomach.

“I don’t know, that’s why I’m asking, idiot!”

“You think I fucked you?” Nico was surprised, but also very, very furious. “Is your asshole bleeding?!”

Jason looked confused for a moment. “I…No.”

“Well, then, fuck you. If I did, I swear your asshole would be burning right fucking now. Anyway, you got drunk last night and I fucking carried you back home. And helped you fucking bathe. Happy?! And by the way, next time, clean up your own house. I’m not your fucking maid!”

“Oh.” Jason looked as if he had kicked a puppy by accident, but to Nico, he had done far worse. By the time Jason wandered back to his bedroom without an apology, Nico felt like engulfing the entire apartment in darkness and dragging it down to the Underworld. To think that he thought that Jason had a crush on him. For the next few hours, Nico just sat on the couch, rightfully furious but also genuinely upset. It was true that Jason had been rather cold to him when they first met up until the Croatian incident, but afterwards, Jason had been his secret keeper and best friend. Drink was Jason’s best friend now. To see him like this, so unlike himself, was equally depressing as it was fucking infuriating.

Jason’s apartment had a nice view of the Atlantic. After getting a cold pack for his neck and a frozen solid bagel for his stomach, Nico just sat tiredly watching the darkness slip away, chased away by the light of the Sun. A small smile emerged when he recalled his time on Apollo’s sun-bus. The change started on the horizon, the warm hues of yellow, pink and orange painting the early morning sky and giving the waves a pretty shimmer. The cold rays of a winter sun streamed through the window, filling the room with a game of colour and shadows. While still a child of darkness, Nico still did welcome the warm light for a change.

Then, the sharp sound of glass shattering broke the silence.

“Jason?”

Nico rushed into the bedroom, lump in his throat as he half-imagined seeing an empty bedroom with curtains fluttering out a broken window.

A lamp laid on the floor beside the bed, its glass base shattered into pieces. The lone figure that was Jason sat on his bed, sobbing bitterly. His red-rimmed eyes betrayed that he was in a terrible place. Nico was not sure if he would be chased out if he sat down next to Jason. He wasn’t.

“Nico, I’m so sorry.” Jason’s voice was barely a whisper, more like a breath.

Trying hard to hide his own feelings, Nico wrapped his arms around him, not pushing Jason away when he started weeping into his chest and wept. The younger man could feel hot, bitter tears staining his t-shirt. “It’s okay. I’m here for you,” he whispered softly.

For a few seconds, Jason raised his head to look at Nico, his face streaked with tears. Nico knew the place where Jason was, a lassitude of shattered dreams and a broken heart. If there was any hostility left over from their argument, it was gone now. Just watching his old friend break down was drawing moisture from his eyes. He desperately needed help, but for all the power that Nico had, there wasn’t much he could do other than offer a shoulder to cry on. Still, Nico pulled Jason into a tight hug, a tear or two meandering around his cheekbone. If he had to cry to reduce Jason’s pain, so be it.

After an hour or two, Jason’s sobbing reduced to the odd hiccup, but tears did continue coursing down his face. Using his thumb, Nico wiped said tears away before doing the same to his own.

“I still keep her number on my speed dial.”

“Oh?” said Nico, somewhat surprised that Jason could still speak. Even more surprising was that he was actually talking about Piper.

“Every time I wake up, I expect to see her by my side, her face shining under the sunlight.” But now, I just keep thinking whether she would pick up my calls.” Jason paused to take a needed breath. “Do you remember the first time you felt something for someone else?”

“…Yes.”

“And how it hurts when you actually know that they are happy with someone else? But you’re also happy that they’re okay without you?”

“Jason,” said Nico softly. “I watched my crush fall into Tartarus to be with his girlfriend.”

“Right, you’ve had it worse than me,” admitted Jason, actually smiling for once.

“Definitely.”

“At least, for your case, it wasn’t anybody’s fault. But for me, it’s definitely mine. And I know it.”

“And it hurts even more knowing.”

“Yes.”

Nico released Jason and let him sit up normally. Jason said nothing for a while before continuing.

“I probably should have known that something was up when she stopped responding to my messages. I thought she was busy or something.”

“But she wasn’t.”

“She finally said that she wanted a break from us. From me,” sighed Jason.

“And it wasn’t just a break.”

“Nope. Next thing I knew, she had moved out and was seeing other guys. The worst part is, I know it’s my fault. I mean, we had been arguing a lot lately, and the last argument, I can’t even remember what the fuck it was about, I think about fruit? I told her that she could always leave if she wanted to.”

“And she did.”

“I sometimes just wish that I can just call her, apologise and make everything go back to the way it was.”

“We all do,” Nico murmured under his breath.

“But by the time I finish dialling her number, I know that it’s never going to work. What’s done is done. I can’t take back what I said and I must live with the consequences of that. A mistake, I made a terrible mistake and I can’t make it right.”

Nico squeezed Jason’s hand gently. “I have made terrible mistakes myself.”

Jason squeezed back. “You think of them sometimes?”

“Always. I wonder what could have been if I didn’t make them, but I cannot afford to let them control me. It’s okay to remember our mistakes, there’s nothing wrong with that. But we must know there’s nothing we can do about them. What we can do though is to let them go and continue living our lives as best as we can. Time passes a lot faster than we notice. And I mean, even we demigods don’t really have a long time to live. And I’m the kid of the god of the Underworld! Next week’s already a new year. And after that, another one. And another.”

“And your biggest mistake was?”

“Who do you think?”

“Oh. I should have guessed.”

“I loved Percy very much. It hurt like hell every time I saw him kissing someone else. But I’ve come to terms that he is happier with her and I let go of him. I’m happy for him. And I’m happy without him. He has and deserves his happy ending. And who knows, I might find mine very soon? Maybe I find someone I’m actually happy to spend the rest of my life with, maybe later, maybe never.”  
“Maybe it’s sooner than you think.”

Nico managed a shy smile. “Maybe. The thing is, it wasn’t having the crush that was the mistake. It was the pushing away of people who wanted to help me. It would have helped me heal faster, but, you know, children of Hades and grudges. It didn’t help when I got caught by Gaia. Then, you went with me down to Split…Just know, if you just need to talk or game or just drink with someone, don’t hesitate to call me over. I can’t fix all your problems, but at least, you won’t have to face them alone.”

For a while, Jason said nothing. He was thankfully no longer crying, but his eyes remained riveted to the ground, making it difficult to tell whether he was feeling. “Thank you, Nico.”

“What for, Jason?”

“For crying with me. Nobody in my entire life has cried with me before.”

“You have no idea what I’d do for you. And you’re welcome.”

Nico couldn’t decipher the look that Jason then gave him, one that was a combination of surprise, worry and happiness. The small smile that Jason had on his face did tell him which emotion was strongest.

“By the way, today’s Christmas, right?”

“Oh, yes,” Nico grinned as he took off his watch and instead, wrapped it around Jason’s wrist. “This was actually meant to be yours. Bought it from Leo, non-breakable, waterproof, fireproof and has a 500-year guarantee.”

“I don’t think I’ll be living that long. But thanks.” Jason rose to his feet, thankfully calmer and sober now. “Wait here for a bit, please.”

It wasn’t too long before he came back into the room, a shiny key in hand.

“Here.”

“It’s…a key?”

“Well, thank you, Captain Obvious,” Jason chuckled. If not for the red rings around his eyes, Nico could have mistaken this Jason for the one he first met many years ago. And it was a good thing to mistake.

“But what does it open?”

“My front door. Duh.”

“And why are you giving me this?” Nico suspected he already knew the answer but he wanted to hear it from Jason’s mouth. At the same time, his heart was starting to drum a beat. And the worst part was, Jason looked as if he knew it.

“Well, you’ve been taking care of me for, what, a week now?”

“Two.”

“Two weeks. And this place is like your second home now, isn’t it? So, now, you can come by any time you want. Or as they say in Italian, ‘Mi casa es tu casa’”.

“That’s. Not. Italian. At. All,” Nico guffawed, his sides shaking with laughter. “Okay, maybe the ‘casa’ part but that’s definitely Spanish.”

Jason just smiled sheepishly. “Maybe you could teach me the differences later. But you’re not staying for much longer, right?”

He only noticed it then. His hand was held in Jason’s, their fingers interlacing. There was no pulling away. This was no accident. Jason’s penetrating gaze seemed to be trying to decipher the truth that was struggling its way out of Nico. Nico’s first thought was to fight it, but then, he realised what he was to do. He helped Jason let go.

As he let Jason lean in to let their lips meet for the first time, he whispered just loudly enough for his beloved to hear, “Just a little while longer.”


End file.
